


Petals that Drip

by Kokoai



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Hanahaki Disease, M/M, Poisoning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-03-07 04:15:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26467051
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kokoai/pseuds/Kokoai
Summary: Hidden feelings had a way of blooming into a splendid flower. Mitsuki had a particular fondness for pink ones after his feelings for another took root.His costly mistake had been not confessing them sooner.
Relationships: Izumi Mitsuki/Kujou Ten
Kudos: 16
Collections: IDOLiSH7 Rarepairs Week 2020





	Petals that Drip

**Author's Note:**

> Kinda rushing this one, but also writing whole fics on only a phone is hard so forgive any awful mistakes. I'll probably come back to fix this up when I have a computer again but I really wanted to get it out in proper rarepair week timing.

Mitsuki rubbed at his teary eyes as the roar of the crowd continued to echo. The end of every live hit him just as hard as that very first one. 

Someone had patted his shoulder to indicate which way the group was exiting the stage. Everyone lingered around exchanging congratulations. Mitsuki quickly noticed three bodies missing. 

"Wait where's TRIGGER?" 

"Tenn-nii's…" Riku trailed as he too searched around. 

The high of performing quickly morphed into fear. They had been right there minutes ago. How far could they have gone?

_ He's so stupid. _ Mitsuki knew only one reason they would vanish like this. He was sure the moment the curtain fell, one Kujou Tenn bolted, the other two right on his tail.

Where they would go Mitsuki couldn't guess. He didn't think they'd go to the dressing room, but then sometimes they really were that predictable. 

The door cracked against the wall. Mitsuki hadn't meant to throw it open so forcefully, and he wouldn't have noticed if Yaotome had immediately yelled about it. 

Mitsuki utterly ignored the shouts as he zeroed in on Kujou who had collapsed against Tsunashi-san. 

"He'll be fine. It's not the first time." No one could have been more reassuring than Tsunashi-san, but that didn't stop the coiling in Mitsuki's chest. 

Kujou looked the farthest from fine. Absolutely no color to his face, his chest rose and fell far too rapidly, and his whole body slumped against Tsunashi-san. 

One moment during their last set Mitsuki had seen it. If he'd blinked he might have missed how Tenn completely missed a step descending from the upper stage. Sure missteps happened, Nagi was a pro at recovering from them at this point. 

Kujou Tenn never missed a step. 

Kujou Tenn never showed imperfection on stage.

Kujou Tenn had not once let fear seep into his eyes on stage. In that one moment, he had been the picture of imperfection and fear. And Mitsuki knew he was hiding something. 

"Gaku…" Tsunashi-san gave a deep look that had the other biting his lip. 

"He's gonna hate us like usual. Izumi, can you call an ambulance?"

Not that Mitsuki would have hesitated, but that sharp gaze was enough to make him inhale sharply as he turned to find a staff member with a phone on hand. 

Once the call was made Mitsuki pushed back into the dressing room. Kujou was unconscious now. Yaotome and Tsunashi-san wore their worries but they were also oddly calm. 

"How hard do you think he'll kick you this time?" Tsunashi-san chuckled.

"He wouldn't dare let a box of donuts hit the floor." 

"Ah you don't think he'll take the box like last time?"

"I'll have the lid open." 

Mitsuki suddenly felt like he was intruding, but he couldn't tear his eyes off that trembling boy that kept taking his breath away. 

This was one of their last lives of the year, and Mitsuki thought about laying his feelings out finally.

At one point Mitsuki swore to take these feelings to the grave. He swallowed hard as that earthy taste filled his mouth. That damn lump rising in the chest would surely climb into his throat and leave him just as breathless in a few moments. 

The ache in his chest kept him planted to the spot. It always did. Anytime Kujou existed near him, his heart raced, rooms would spin and even on the coldest days he'd burn in seconds. 

Where exactly these feelings had come from Mitsuki didn't know. How long ago they'd taken root deep in the pits of his chest he couldn't guess. At some point what had been admiration and respect for a fellow idol morphed into feelings that bloomed in his throat. 

From that very first pink petal that spilled over his lips he knew he couldn't keep those feelings contained forever. Finding the time and place to pour his heart out had been a struggle. 

Now, sitting beside a hospital bed listening to the monitors and keeping his gaze fixed on a still unconscious Kujou, he grew paranoid he'd waited too long. 

_ What if he doesn't wake up? or this damn flower gets me first? _

"Izumi? You're still here?" Yaotome had come back from getting dinner with Tsunashi-san. 

"Ah yeah. I just figured it'd be better in case he woke up while you were out." 

"You worry too much." Yaotome commented. 

"You were just like him the first few times." Tsunashi-san countered. 

Yaotome said nothing else, merely turned towards Tenn. 

"You wanna wake up now?" Gaku's tone took a complete turn. 

"Seriously how do you always know?" Tenn sighed, breaking his entire act in a moment. 

Mitsuki stuttered. How long had he been awake? How had Mitsuki not noticed? 

"Your lips twitched when Ryuu poked fun at me. You wanted to laugh."

"It was kinda funny when you stayed up an entire day and then tripped over the door frame." 

"Shut it brat." 

Something in Mitsuki flipped. He had been ready to slip out of the room and stop invading their space. But he couldn't do that now not when— 

"Wait wait, this happens a lot??" His voice grew more panicked than he intended. All three idols turned towards him with equal expressions of surprise. 

Kujou was the first to look away. 

"It's...this isn't the first time, yes." 

"Doubt it'll be the last either." Yaotome huffed. 

"Oi oi, aren't you the leader here? Why don't you stop him from ending up like this??" Mitsuki boiled. His personal feelings aside, ignoring the roots creeping further down his lungs, he was livid. 

How easily Yaotome and Tsunashi-san left, how lax they were even at the venue when Kujou could barely breathe all left a bitter taste. Now Mitsuki understood, but it only made him that much more irritated. 

Despite how much taller Yaotome was, that hadn't deterred Mitsuki from digging his foot in and glaring with all his might upwards with full intent to break those stone grey eyes. 

Yaotome's brows knit and he inhaled sharply. Mitsuki felt the bark coming and bared his fangs. If he had to fight he would. 

"Have you ever tried to stop this guy from anything? I swear he'd convince you to let him jump off a bridge." Everything about Yaotome went lax as he gestured towards a displeased Kujou. 

Kujou simply smiled sweetly.

"I'm sure the fans would love to see you flail like an idiot in mid air." His words were so light yet delivered with such deadly accuracy it even made Mitsuki shiver. Yaotome however had shrugged it off. 

"What Tenn means," Tsunashi-san started loud enough to drown out the beginnings of more bickering "is that he appreciates you being worried but that you can relax." 

Kujou turned towards Tsunashi-san and Mitsuki expected some protest, but instead Kujou blushed and dropped his gaze to the floor. 

As the chatter continued, Mitsuki made his decision. He would come back later, when he could be alone with Kujou, and would force his feelings out even if it killed him. 

Hours went by and Mitsuki tried to practice his words, figure out how to express his feelings, yet he ended up beside Kujou's bed, his fists balled at his side. He couldn't flake out now. 

Now that he stood under those two pink spotlights, he froze. His heart rammed against his ribs. 

"Izumi?" 

_ Ah crap… _ Tears stained Mitsuki's cheek. A droplet fell to the floor from the motion of him looking upwards. He wasn't sure what expression he expected Kujou to wear, but it certainly wasn't something so...sad and worried. 

Mitsuki fumbled words around his head. Nothing sounded right, but the longer he cried under Kujou's gaze the harder it became to find a single word. 

Then there was the rising lump in his chest. He could feel the bulb forcing it's way up his esophagus. His heart thumped in fear that he'd begun a fight with time. 

"Kujou, I…"  _ I like you _

Why were three words so hard to say? 

Mitsuki swallowed petals, and choked on the earthy taste before his body moved on it's own. 

The chair squealed behind him and he shot up and came to hover over Kujou. For a moment Mitsuki saw a flicker of fear in those rosy eyes. 

Quickly yet incredibly softly, Mitsuki pushed his lips against Kujou's. A shuddered breath pushed itself against those lips before Mitsuki leaned back. The reality of what he'd done setting in. 

"Oh shit I'm sorry I—" Mitsuki was cut off by his own cough. A cough that tore through his airways with the might of a rodeo bull. It left him winded and gasping between every subsequent cough. 

He clamped a hand over his mouth as he felt petals and buds alike land on his tongue. 

Mitsuki wanted to run, to bolt into the hallway to at least spare himself the humiliation of his crush seeing him like this. He only made it a few steps before his vision went black, his limbs tingling and trembling while the room turned into an oven. And then he fell. 

"Izumi!" Tenn hadn't processed anything except the sight of Mitsuki dropping. He never noticed the sting on his lips or the slow fire that crept over his skin. 

A nurse had rushed in at Tenn's shouting and in a blink, Izumi was gone and Tenn was left staring at the doorway as he burned despite feeling cold inside. 

No matter how many times he requested an update, he kept being told only that Izumi was being taken care of. 

Tenn watched the clock. 

Thirty minutes. An hour. Two hours. Two hours and forty-five minutes. 

Three hours. Three and a half hours later, Gaku slipped into the room. 

"Tenn…" Gaku's head fell. 

"Tell me something please." 

Suddenly sobs rang out from just outside Tenn's door before a light knock echoed. 

"Tenn-nii…"

"Riku? How bad is he." 

"He's...they don't think he'll make it. Tenn-nii...what happened?" 

Tenn had no clue. Izumi had simply been struggling with words, and then everything happened as quickly as Riku having an attack. In hindsight, the coughs and the way he fell were identical to when Riku had fainted from attacks. The thought made Tenn lurch. 

What was Tenn supposed to say? He honestly had no guess at what had taken over Izumi. A sudden illness? A health problem he'd been hiding? 

"I think…" Gaku started, and then paused when his eyes locked onto something under the bed. 

Riku choked back sobs as he followed Gaku's gaze. Tenn shifted, he couldn't see whatever they saw. 

"Tenn… was he coughing just before?" 

"What does that have to do with anything?" The longer this went on the more infuriated Tenn became.

Riku bolted out of the room unable to stop his cries. 

"There pink petals under your bed." 

No one had brought flowers in, there weren't even fake ones in the room. 

_ That's what… _ Tenn couldn't have ever guessed. Izumi never once hinted at the existence of any feelings. Of course that's what that kiss was. 

But why had it knocked the life out of Izumi so suddenly?

"So Izumi Mitsuki has the flower sickness is that it?" 

"You can't be this stupid."

"Excuse me?" 

"It's because of you Tenn!" 

Those words bit like a snake. Tenn knew it really. He'd seen those glances, the prolonged goodbyes, how Izumi would hang around Riku more often. 

They were idols. Those sort of feelings had no place within an idol's heart. That had been what Tenn reminded himself of to keep his own feelings quiet. 

He hadn't thought much of Izumi Mitsuki at first. Hardly noticed him until the Music Festival incident. After that he never spared a glance. Except those times they had jobs together. 

Tenn figured that's where it started. Hearing him talk so earnestly about his group and wanting to exceed his limits so he could grow into a better idol. Every task he took seriously and poured his all into it. How could Tenn not admire that?

When those feelings had twisted he would never know. 

Only when he sat in that hospital bed, tears threatening to stain his image could he even admit to…

"I need to see him." 

"Yeah good luck. You're still under watch and he's on another floor." 

"They can remove the flowers can't they?"

Tenn knew that meant Izumi may not remember him, but if it let him live. 

"Don't know. They kicked out everyone except their manager and the younger Izumi." 

The air in Tenn's lungs vanished. Any words he may have uttered died on his tongue. He could still feel the static on his lips Izumi had left there. 

Gaku's continued stare left Tenn feeling cold. Logically this wasn't his fault and yet he blamed himself for Izumi's condition. He should have realized how Izumi felt, he should have noticed  _ something _ off about his singing. 

In reality he had. That strain in the man's voice was masked well, but to trained ears, it was like nails on a chalkboard. Tenn only ever made jabs at Riku to ensure his members were in proper health. 

Perhaps if Tenn had realized his feelings sooner….

Could he have prevented this? Would a simple confession be enough for the flowers to shrivel? If he could just get to Izumi now, maybe he could save him. 

—

Lady Luck would not side with him. 

Gaku and Ryuu had gathered in Tenn's room, updating him on Izumi's condition whenever they heard anything. 

As more time passed, Tenn's stomach continued to twist, even his intestines knotted. The room started to spin, but Gaku and Ryuu were unfazed. 

Tenn knew he'd lose consciousness soon. He couldn't fight it, he knew that all too well. 

Before he could warn either of his group mates, he blinked and blacked out. 

When he came to, the room was empty. Despite the fog clouding his head, he knew things around him had moved. His throat was dry and burned. 

Looking at the clock did nothing to demystify his situation. It only brought more questions. Gaku and Ryuu had been here in the evening but now sunlight blazed through the curtains. No notes left like usual. No one here to fill him in either. 

Of course the nurse that did come to check on him couldn't say anything, Tenn knew that but he was desperate enough to try. 

Everything flipped the moment she asked him some questions. 

What do you remember? What outdoor areas have you been to lately? Any contact with plants that left you feeling strange? 

Then came the real blow to his chest. 

"What is your relation to Izumi Mitsuki?" 

How should he answer? Were they friends or acquaintances? Or nothing more than industry peers? 

He settled on acquaintances. The nurse looked uneasy with her next words,

"You fainted due to poisoning. From a type commonly found in particular flower species." 

That was when Kujou Tenn's world stopped. His fingers came to touch his bottom lip. Where that stinging had started hours after his first kiss. 

It had been a literal poisoned kiss. A kiss of death even if Tenn were incredibly unlucky. The flowers that had taken root in Izumi's chest were incredibly toxic. Usually ingesting even a single petal could be lethal. Presumably Izumi's body had been able to build up some immunity since he was under constant exposure. 

However, the petals left their mark on his lips, and coated them with that lethal toxin. If Tenn weren't already overworked his body may have been able to fight it off, it had only been a relatively small amount passed to him. Nonetheless enough to cause him to faint.

He wondered if Izumi had succumbed to the poison or if it had been the natural progression of the flower sickness. 

As if some deity were taking pity on him, Ryuu came into the room. His shoulders sagged and his eyes were gloomy like a storm at sea yet he smiled softly. 

"What happened with the younger Izumi?" Tenn would go insane if someone didn't tell him something soon.

"Tenn…"

"Ryuu please."

"He...didn't make it." 

Before Ryuu had finished, tears streaked down Tenn's cheeks. Sobs bubbled in his throat. He tried to swallow them, force on a brave face. He couldn't do it. 

Everything in him shattered. Tears falling like fragments of his heart onto the sheets. His voice cracked and squeaked despite only coming out in strangled sobs. 

Nevermind his feelings towards Izumi, he knew IDOLiSH7 would crumble. Riku was close to Izumi too. His voice wouldn't allow him to ask about Riku, but he hoped his eyes alone could express his desperate plea. 

Ryuu shifted, his gaze dropping. 

"They're naturally devastated. Last I saw, Nagi-kun was walking Iori-kun and Riku-kun out." 

Tenn doubted he'd ever be welcome around IDOLiSH7 again. This was on his hands after all. He couldn't blame them for never wanting to stand on stage with him again. 

As expected, the group took a hiatus in the weeks to follow. Whether they would continue or disband remained unknown. Gaku and Ryuu had reached out a couple times to various members, but the conversation never went further than polite formalities. Tenn never reached out, and only their manager had contacted him. 

Their next live, Tenn decided against all scripts and plans, to give a moment to their peers. Gaku and Ryuu followed so seamlessly Anesagi swore they'd planned it secretly. 

He could only hope his singing could reach their hearts and at least allow them to hate him a little less. If they did disband, then Tenn would sing with the strength of eight. He couldn't atone and he knew that, but he would carry on for Izumi's sake if nothing else. 

After the live, still buzzing from the performance high, the three idols sat in their dressing room taking a silent moment for themselves. It was the first they had publicly acknowledged Izumi Mitsuki. 

Tenn nearly jumped at the sound of his own phone. It was his text tone, which was odd since everyone he usually messaged with was there. 

_ Tenn-nii do you have time soon?  _

_ Our live just finished so I can talk. _

_ I want to talk in person if that's okay _

Tenn's stomach twisted. Was this the point where even Riku turned away from him for what had happened? 

_ I can stop by later tonight if that's alright with you?  _

Riku stopped responding, which added an extra knot to his stomach. He could only assume no objections meant his visit would be expected. So he hoped. Being left at the door would be another sting he wouldn't be ready for. 

Only a few weeks had passed since Izumi's death. Tenn expected the group to still be in shambles or something. Instead he walked into upbeat music and a seemingly relaxed atmosphere. Except given a few minutes around them, Tenn could see it was a distraction. 

Two members in particular were missing. Two that were in another room waiting. 

Izumi Iori and Riku looked up at him in unison. Neither of them were all there, but Riku held eye contact just a little longer. 

The air was thick to even breath in. What could Tenn even say at this point? What did they want to hear from him?

"Tenn-nii…" Riku's voice cracked. His head turned completely away. 

"I'm sorry for putting you on the spot like this." 

"It must be important if for you to want it said in person." 

"Yeah. I...we want to know if you...felt the same towards Mitsuki." 

Somewhere Tenn knew this question would come eventually. Whether simple morbid curiosity, or out of need for closure he couldn't guess. 

Tenn had even practiced his response but now the words vanished. 

"Kujou-san...be honest please."

"We both need to hear it from you. Regardless of the answer." Riku sounded on the verge of sobbing. 

"I…" Tenn took a deep breath "wouldn't have been able to say it to him soon enough." 

Was that enough? Would it answer their question?

"So you did love him…"

Izumi Iori was barely above a whisper. Perhaps he'd known all along what his brother had been going through. 

"I did. As an idol I denied any of those types of feelings, thus I failed to notice how he felt." 

"It's okay Tenn-nii. We wondered but he hid it well." 

Surely that should have been reassuring to Tenn, yet it only made him feel worse. If he'd been more open with his emotions he wouldn't have had to watch Riku breaking down in tears. 

Tenn tried to leave, tried to use the excuse of feeling a burden to them, but Izumi Iori had stopped him. To Riku's surprise, Tenn was asked to stay for a bit longer. 

There had been that distance between the groups ever since. As it would turn out, they had been among the live viewing for TRIGGER's performance. They had all been stunned at the sudden memorial moment. Riku and Izumi Iori had collectively decided based on that, that they needed their final closure. 

It would leave a slow healing scar, but at least now both groups could gather again and help each other move forward. 


End file.
